Koura refrigerant sales drop 11% due to illegal trade

MEXICO: Refrigerant manufacturer and supplier Koura has blamed illegal imports of HFCs in Europe for an 11% drop in sales in the first quarter of this year.

Formerly known as Mexichem Fluor, Koura posted revenues of $182m in the first three month of this year, compared to $205m in the same period last year.

“The decline was mainly due to lower sales in Koura’s “downstream” business per the continued impact of the illegal import of refrigerant gases into the European Union,” group company owner Orbia claimed in its most recent financial report.

In Q1 2020, reported EBITDA for Koura was $68m, down 21% from $86m in Q1 2009.